Method of making a publication and product produced thereby

Abstract

A publication designed to receive a photograph of a subject, such as a child, so that the subject in the photograph forms a part of the illustrations on the pages of the publication. The publication is designed to allow the subject to be identified with a particular organization of an association. For example, the publication may be designed to allow the subject to be identified as a player of a particular team within a football, basketball, baseball, or other sports league. The invention also relates to a publication produced using a computer to manipulate image data stored on a CD-ROM or the like so that the image data generic to each organization within an association can be easily enhanced and customized to depict one or more particular organizations within the association, such as one or more particular football teams within a football league. In this manner, a variety of different publications may be easily produced so that a subject may be identified with any organization within an association, for example, as a member of a sports team within a league. The publication may also include a sports card as a part thereof such that the face of the subject in the photograph forms a part of the illustration on the sports card.

What is claimed is: 
     
       1. A publication capable of receiving a pictorial representation of a subject to identify said subject with a particular organization of a plurality of organizations within an association, produced by: generating image data representative of generic graphic indicia which is related to said association and generic with respect to each of said organizations, said generic graphic indicia including a generic depiction of a member of said association;   enhancing said generic graphic indicia by (a) selecting and distinguishing feature data, which feature data is representative of features within said generic graphic indicia, from the image data representative of said generic indicia, and   (b) modifying said selected and distinguished feature data so as to convert said features within said generic graphic indicia into features which are representative of a particular organization within the association and such that the generic depiction of the member of the association is identifiable with said particular organization;     placing said enhanced generic graphic indicia onto page sheets such that the member of the association appears in a plurality of page sheets;   forming in a plurality of sheets a cut-out in a facial area of the enhanced depiction of the member of the association appearing in the plurality of sheets, and said cut-outs being aligned; and   assembling said page sheets into a page set; and   providing a backing member adapted to support said pictorial representation of said subject in a manner in which a facial portion of said subject is viewable through the aligned cut-outs when said pictorial representation is supported on said backing member.   
     
     
       2. A publication produced in accordance with the process of claim 1 wherein the step of generating image data representative of generic graphic indicia includes scanning artwork and converting the depiction appearing in said artwork into transferable data. 
     
     
       3. A publication produced in accordance with the process of claim 1 wherein the step of modifying said selected and distinguished feature data includes placing said selected and distinguished feature data into individual channels with each channel having a separate feature characteristic and adding coloring data into at least some of said channels in sequential, channel-by-channel fashion. 
     
     
       4. A publication produced in accordance with the process of claim 3 wherein the step of selecting and distinguishing feature data includes outlining a border area of the generic image of the member of the association which is to be enhanced by the addition of color. 
     
     
       5. A publication produced in accordance with the process of claim 4 wherein said generic graphic indica includes a plurality of generic depictions of representative members in said association and the step of enhancing said generic graphic indicia includes selecting and distinguishing feature data from at least some of said depictions and convening the selected and distinguished feature data such that the representative members therein are identifiable with a particular one of said organizations, and said step of enhancing further including placing the selected and distinguished feature data into separate channels with each channel being directed at a particular characteristic of said representative members. 
     
     
       6. A publication produced in accordance with the process of claim 5 wherein said association is a sports league and said organizations are sports teams within said league, and the step of generating image data representative of generic graphic indicia includes generating image data which includes data relating to a generic depiction of a uniformed player within said association, and the step of enhancing said generic graphic image includes converting the generic image of the uniformed player to a player identifiable with a particular one of the teams in said league. 
     
     
       7. A publication produced in accordance with the process of claim 6 wherein the step of enhancing the generic depiction of a uniformed player includes forming channels with data relating to a uniform shirt and a uniform bottom of the uniformed player and providing color to said channels so as to identify the uniformed player with a particular team in the league. 
     
     
       8. A publication produced in accordance with the process of claim 5 wherein the step of enhancing said graphic indicia includes selecting and distinguishing feature data of at least some of said representative members and modifying the feature data so that at least two particular organizations within said association are identifiable through the depiction of said enhanced generic depiction of said representative members, and said modifying of the feature data comprising grouping the feature data of a plurality of channels together and modifying the feature data therein so as to have a common color. 
     
     
       9. A publication produced in accordance with the process of claim 1 wherein said association is a sports league and said organizations are sports teams within said league and the step of generating image data representative of generic graphic indicia includes generating image data which includes data relating to a generic depiction of a uniformed player within said association, and the step of enchancing said generic graphic image includes converting the generic image of the uniformed player to a player identifiable with a particular one of the teams in said league. 
     
     
       10. A publication produced in accordance with the process of claim 1 wherein said process further comprises the step of providing positioning means on said backing member to facilitate proper placement of the pictorial representation when mounted. 
     
     
       11. A publication produced in accordance with the process of claim 10 wherein said process further comprises the step of mounting said pictorial representation on or within said positioning means. 
     
     
       12. A publication capable of receiving a pictorial representation of a subject to identify said subject with a particular team, which team is one of a plurality of teams within a league, comprising: a plurality of sheets, with a least some of said sheets including graphic indicia depicting uniformed players which are members of a sport league comprised of a plurality of teams;   at least some of said sheets further comprising enchancing indicia which includes coloring and logos for depicting said uniformed players as members of a particular one of said teams in said league;   said uniformed player including a facial area and a plurality of said sheets having a common uniformed player in each, and the facial area of said common individual having a cut-out formed therein which is aligned on at least some of said sheets in which said common individual is depicted;   a support member adapted to support said pictorial representation of said subject which is not a member of said league such that a facial portion in said pictorial representation is aligned with the cut-outs; and   pictorial representation positioning means provided on said support member and adapted to ensure proper placement of said pictorial representation.   
     
     
       13. A publication as recited in claim 12 wherein said support member is a front surface of one of said sheets in said plurality of sheets. 
     
     
       14. A publication as recited in claim 13 wherein said positioning means includes added indicia on said support sheet. 
     
     
       15. A publication as recited in claim 12 wherein said page sheets with said cut-outs include a front and rear surface with said enhanced generic graphic indicia provided on both the front and rear surface and the cut-out in each page sheet is provided in the facial area of either said front or rear surface of said page sheet and in a neutral area of the opposite surface of said page sheet. 
     
     
       16. A publication as recited in claim 12, wherein one of said sheets includes a sports card.